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Thursday, March 18, 2010

It was mid-afternoon in Chianti. Dianne and I had just visited the small village of Radda in Chianti.

(btw - if you ever make it to this delightful town, you must visit Decori nel Tempo (http://www.decorineltempo.it/catalogo.aspx?lingua=1) - they make beautiful, tasteful chianti ceramics and other lovely homewares and paintings, perfect for gifts. Whenever I am in the Chianti region, I make a point of coming to the shop. They close for siesta, so time your visit before or after lunch.)

We were heading out of Radda when we spotted a lovely Chianti landscape, so we pulled off onto a side road.

We both then wandered off to find the vantage point that suited us. I went one way, Dianne the other, and we spent about 30 minutes waiting (there was some rain about), composing and shooting. Dianne's perspective:

My perspective:

Both of these images have definite leading lines - line is the strongest element of design, and can determine the emotional impact of an image. As a photographer you need to be aware of the subtle feelings associated with the different types of lines.

Dianne's image contains curved lines. These are the lines we expect to see in nature and they are soft and relaxing, and they also lead us gently through the image. My image contains strong diagonal lines (which is more my style), and they give the image a more directional and energetic feel. In this instance I feel Dianne's image is the more successful of the two.

When shooting a wide landscape scene, don't forget to also shoot the smaller detailed elements of that same scene. (In fact, I shot the close-up of the grapes before I even started on the lansdcape. I find that it's a nice way to ease into the expansive wide angle work.) By having the small details as well as the "big picture" your story is stronger and more interesting. I find it's also more personal, as what you notice as a small detail depends on what catches your eye.

Photoshop post-production for grapes:

None. (It was a cloudy day, and that automatically creates stronger contrasts and colours.)

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Join us as we showcase some of our favourite (and not so favourite!) images that we've taken in Italy. By sharing the stories behind these images we hope you can improve your own travel photography.
Happy Shooting from Lisa and Dianne!